The Diamondbacks are bringing back manager Torey Lovullo for what’ll be his 10th season, as first reported by Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic. Lovullo was already under contract for one more year after signing an extension shortly after the team won the National League pennant in 2023.
While the Diamondbacks aren’t making a managerial change, it seems they’ll keep Lovullo in a lame duck setup. John Gambadoro of 98.7 FM reports that the 60-year-old Lovullo is not expected to sign an extension this offseason. Teams generally shy away from having managers and top front office personnel on expiring deals, but it seems leadership in Arizona is content with that arrangement heading into 2026.
The D-Backs have come up short of the playoffs in each of the two seasons following their league championship. Last year’s team won 89 games and finished on the outside on the final day of the season. They backed up to an 80-82 finish that placed fourth in the NL West this year. The Mets’ collapse helped keep the Diamondbacks mathematically alive into the final weekend, but they finished with their first losing season since 2022.
They’ve dramatically ramped up spending in each of the last two winters. They’ve focused most of their free agent activity on the rotation. None of the deals for Corbin Burnes, Eduardo Rodriguez or Jordan Montgomery have worked out. All three pitchers have been some combination of ineffective or injured. The Snakes signed each of Ketel Marte, Brandon Pfaadt, Geraldo Perdomo and Justin Martinez to extensions last winter.
With all that mind, owner Ken Kendrick told Gambadoro on Sunday that he’d “never been more disappointed in a season than this one because (their) expectations were so high.” Kendrick expanded on that comment during an appearance on the Burns & Gambo show this afternoon, saying it’s rooted largely in the injuries that wrecked the pitching staff. Losing Burnes to Tommy John surgery was the biggest blow, but the Snakes were also left with a patchwork bullpen for four-plus months by season-ending injuries to Martinez and A.J. Puk.
The Diamondbacks sold impending free agents Merrill Kelly, Eugenio Suárez, Josh Naylor, Shelby Miller and Randal Grichuk at the deadline. It’s to their credit that they didn’t phone in their last two months. The Snakes went 29-24 after the deadline. It ended in disappointing fashion with a five-game losing streak, but they improbably remained on the postseason periphery with a bullpen comprising mostly rookies or journeymen depth pickups.
Lovullo came under some fire in the middle of August when reports emerged that some players were frustrated with Marte for taking too many games off. The manager defended his star second baseman, who subsequently apologized for missing the first few games of the second half after returning to the Dominican Republic following the All-Star Break. Marte later said he was upset upon learning that his home in Arizona had been burglarized while he was attending the All-Star festivities. D-Backs’ ownership and the front office are evidently confident that Lovullo handled the situation well enough to not lose the clubhouse.
General manager Mike Hazen is also headed into his tenth season. Lovullo had worked with Hazen with the Red Sox and followed him to the desert not long after the GM’s hiring. The D-Backs have made two postseason berths in their nine seasons. They won 93 games and were bounced in the Division Series in 2017. The ’23 NL championship season is their only other playoff berth during that stretch. The D-Backs have a .490 regular season win percentage under Lovullo.
.500 team this year. If they sign Grisham or Bellinger, they are almost guaranteed to be a wild card team at the minimum next year. If they sign both of them, they are almost guaranteed to have a deep playoff run at the minimum. Signing those 2 should be their number 1 priority at nearly any cost- they should be as much of blank checks/Brinks Trucks situations as there have ever been in MLB history. They should give them whatever perks they want (multiple box suites for life, private hotel suites with private security protected from the rest of the team for life, etc) so that they don’t make the same misstep the Yankees made with Juan.
I think you made the same comment in regards to the Rangers, which is fine. I doubt the Yankees will let Bellinger go elsewhere, and I see the Mets signing Grisham. But at any rate, both dudes will be in high demand and a fit for many teams.
Same comment made regarding the Rangers and Pirates.
These stupid troll accounts are so annoying. Wish the people in charge would do something about it.
Teams need to be very wary of the one season power display from Trent Grisham. This is still a player not that far removed from back-to-back-to-back seasons batting under .200…
Plus he won’t have the short RF porch to hit cheap HRs into. His power will decrease as well.
Rsox – Lovullo will always be the one that got away.
He was a big part of the 2013 Red Sox championship team, but they chose to let him go after the 2016 season because they were forced to bring back John Farrell … who ironically was fired after the 2017 season in large part because Alex Cora’s cheating led to the Red Sox losing the ALDS in just 4 games.
I always say in life, timing is everything.
Fever—I was on the Lovullo bandwagon when he was in Boston. Actually, I was driving the bandwagon! Why they didn’t keep him in the fold is beyond me. If memory serves me correctly, during the short time that Lovullo managed the Sox, the team really seemed to enjoy playing for him. You’re right that the Sox were forced to bring back Farrell. You can’t fire a manager who stepped aside for health reasons. But they should have done everything possible to keep Lovullo.
Fat – Yeah it was a difficult situation for Dombrowski. Not only John’s health issues, but he won the division the year prior. It’s hard to justify firing someone with 3 division titles and a WS championship in just 5 seasons.
And I can understand Lovullo not wanting to wait any longer for the promotion to manager. When it’s time, it’s time. I’m afraid Tek might do the same now that it appears Cora will be coming back next season.
Fever—well I know it’s been rumored that Cora wants to move up into a Front Office position and get out of the dugout…can’t be soon enough for me. If there is more to the rumors, I could see Varitek waiting it out.
Agreed, but as current outcomes go Cora won a championship and little else, Lovullo did go to the World Series and little else. Not saying things wouldn’t have been better with Lovullo but they could have wound up the same
Fat – Tek already interviewed for the Giants manager job a couple years ago.
Anytime you see the words brinks truck on this site it’s definitely this troll
Ask the Mets about guaranteed playoff spots based on free agent signings…. I think you’re gonna need a lot more than that for a guaranteed spot lol
That’s what all said about signing Soto
Signing a generational talent didn’t do much did it ?
“Generational talent” is one of those thoughtless cliches that have become common in professional sports. What does it really mean? It suggests a unique level of ability unmatched by any of his contemporaries, a once-in-a-generation player. But I think it simply refers to a pretty good player who has been able to leverage the hype about him into a huge contract over a lengthy period of years. If Soto were a generational talent, others would not outperform him, unless, of course, those others were generational talents too, which would make the whole concept ludicrous. Think about it—how many other players in Soto’s era have been, or will be, described as generational talents?
Automatic eye-roll anytime I hear/read someone using that term nowadays. It’s just being used synonymously for all-star or one of the best. But the phrase *should* be reserved only for those that are consistently a plateau higher than the very best. There can be a few; I don’t think it has to be just one, if only because there are many ways to measure talent.
I always said it was a great exaggeration
@captainmike1. I should emphasize that my comment wasn’t directed at you or your previous comment. The overuse/misuse of the phrase ‘generational talent’ in sports media is one of those things that drives me up the wall…. admittedly, more than it really should.
@realsox: Thank you for making this point. The term has been dumbed down to the point of meaninglessness. Here in Chicago, we were told that Tucker was a generational talent. He turned out to be a guy with a flat-footed swing who squared up a pitch now and then but seemed mostly concerned with keeping up his OBP by begging walks from umpires. He almost never got a hit that drove in a needed run at an important time. He is an average player.
I believe the Dbacks were #1 in runs scored in ’24 and #4 this year. The offense may take a step back with Lawler, Alexander, Smith, Tawa, Waldschmidt and McCann playing larger roles over 162 games in ’26, but this off-season is all about pitching, pitching and more pitching.
Blank checks just to be a wild card team lol.
Darren Dreifort’s contract didn’t result in a Wild Card appearance for the Dodgers. Lol.
Back again? TeodosioFan, Backinthebleachersis, TheOpener, The Voices, Evan Stanleyson, TrojanToss, oi0ewt98er, TheFormerPlayer, Fan of the Umpires, VoiceofREASON, soulefh, Owensboro, 88 Brooklyn Dodgers, BinHenders, California 8, Alvo Sumatro, tikiagedola, Masculinetimwaltz, and rachelmaddowishot, and Boycottsidneysweeney
But now with your new lame “Blank check/Brinks truck” schtick to make provocative long reply chains?
Tim, please, if you can, install IP blocks for trolls like him.
If you think signing any two players especially ones with as big of worts as those two guarantees you a playoff spot you’re going to be sorely disappointed. You must be a new fan or the agent of those two players.,
I didn’t think Lovullo was ever much at risk of losing his job. The pitching staff was decimated with injuries and the Martel issues seemed blown out of proportion. The team certainly didn’t give up even after the trade deadline selloff.
Glad to have Torey back. He seems to communicate well and gets 100% from his players. Torey and his staff work with and develop young players mentally and physically – Perdomo, Carroll, Moreno, Thomas, McCarthy, Alexander, Lawler, Tawa, etc. I agree with most of his pitching decisions. When I dont, I usually find a pitcher was unavailable due to overuse, injury or illness. Welcome back, Torey.
Could not disagree more. Lovullo is a good guy but not a great manager. He lacks ability to strategize how to score runs in tight games and burns thru relievers. He forgets that a loss in early season is just as critical as one in Sept – Oct. I also advocate for a new GM. Hazen’s infatuation with Pygmy outfielders is not working and his station to station style does not use the strength (speed) of these smaller faster players.
Whoever signed montgomery should have his brain examined for damage
Yeah brain damage.
Owner Ken Kendrick pushed to sign Monty. I think he’s leaving the baseball decisions to Hazen now.
It’s time for a change. Lovullo goes on and on and on about how they are “grinding” and how he loves them all. He wants to be their buddy and not their boss. This is a business and he makes lots of poor baseball decisions which makes it worse. Get a real pitching coach while you are at it. This was a tough year for injuries but the team needs to man up and find a leader, not just another guy who wants to hold their hands. Get an outfielder with an arm while you are at it and get rid of a couple of the little outfielders with weak arms. And why in the world did they give a big contact to Justin Martinez??? He isn’t proven and so while he throws hard. If he isn’t effective it doesn’t matter.
Lovullo has a really big heart and he cares for all his guys but sometimes that can get in the way of holding guys accountable because you’re always in “Dad” mode. The Mariners saw that with their last manager Scott Servais and had to make a change finally. I personally don’t think it’s that big of a deal and Torey seems to keep a harmonious clubhouse.
Mike Shildt is the same way. Though he has figured out how to win at least 90 games in every year he has managed. So I don’t think it’s about how he manages and more about the team he has to manage. The dbacks were a fringe playoff team at the beginning of the season. Once the injuries hit and Gallons pretty big decline happened that team was doomed.
I think there’s something to that, but the team also played hard for him down the stretch. They were ten games out and sold at the deadline. They could have mailed it in but didn’t. Credit to Torey for this.
A manager is as much about motivation and mental preparedness as strategy.
So he gets credit for the effort down the stretch but not held accountable for how comatose this team looked leading up to the trade deadline? Hazen said multiple times he was begging for this team to give him a reason to buy at the deadline and the team looked like they actively didn’t want to give any effort.
DarkGhost
That is correct, Luvollo gets credit for managing the team to show some effort. You are also correct, that he cannot be held responsible for your “impression”/“gut feeling”/ what ever you think you were seeing earlier in the season. You are the only one who thinks Torey should be held responsible, and judged by a particular 20 game stretch of the season instead of for the whole season. Do you think any manager should be fired, for example for a 20 game stretch of the season where the team had putrid results, rather than for the whole season in which they win the World Series?
I hope you understand how ludicrous you comment sounds to anyone who can think?
Well clearly I hit a sensitive spot for you huh. I didn’t say he should get fired I asked a question about if he gets credit for the good things then why he is not held responsible for the bad? This isn’t kindergarten respond to my actual words not how my words make you feel.
The point I am making is why does get credit for a team of professionals paid to play for a living playing hard but not held accountable when they aren’t playing hard? Again this isn’t kindergarten none of these players are playing purely for the love of the game. They are paid professional who job is to preform at the highest level possible that includes the manager.
If you argument is considering the mass amount injuries sustained, the nose dive of Zac Gallen in the first half, a truly god awful bullpen, and the antics of Ketel Marte the fact they were in contention until the last week of the season is why Torey showed he is a competent leader and should be the manager then make the argument for that. Don’t pull this weird 20 game stretch thing out of your butt or talk about impressions/ feelings. Sports is about performance. Did he perform to the level that he should keep his job? If so then make a case for it, but don’t word vomit your emotional response like it’s a real answer. It makes you sound like a petulant child.
Dark Ghost
You wrote “how comatose this team looked” and “the team looked like they actively didn’t want to give any effort”, so you are the one writing about “impressions/feelings”. My point was that you are expecting the team to play the way you perceive things. Now you are saying they are professionals. Which is it? Are they playing like professionals only when their Results are in accordance with your expectations? Or are your “perceptions” that a team of professionals is “comatose” or that they look like they don’t want to give any effort (those are your words, those re your reads on what these professionals are think or effort in during periods of time when the Results aren’t to you liking.). I’m saying you have no right to hold them or their manager to a standard that is based on your misguided impressions of why they aren’t getting the Results you desire. They are professionals. They want to win. They always put forth professional level effort. But baseball is a game of failure. The Results aren’t always what we as fans want to see. Just remember, the Hall of Fame hitters are the ones who only fail 70% of the time. so they hit .300!
This is so laughable you can’t have your cake and eat it too. You can’t on one side of your mouth say he gets credit for “managing the team to show some effort” and then on the other say “you have no right to the hold them to the standards or their manager to a standard that is based on your misguided impressions” You are literally contradicting yourself in your posts. He gets credit when the effort is good because when the effort is good it’s measurable. However he doesn’t get blame when the effort is bad because effort isn’t measurable when it’s bad. God I wish I lived in your world where when I preform well I get credit and when I perform poorly I’m not accountable. I’m not saying he should or should not be fired but there are several things that could have been done differently with this team this year and last that would have gotten them in the playoffs that had nothing to do with the player performance.
DarkGhost. You have confused effort with results. In any game, 26 players on each team put out professional effort to try to win that game, but one team achieves the desired result—a win—while the other team fails to get the desired result—they lose. All 52 players gave maximum effort, but only 26 players got the desired result. Effort and results are two different things. Your argument assumes that effort is measured by results. That is not true. Just because the Dbacks lost several games in a stretch, does not mean they were comatose or they didn’t care about winning. The effort was there every game, as it is for athletes at the level of professionalism.
So is it a double standard that fans use when they credit the manager for a string of victories and not criticize him for a string of losses? No. It’s a confusion of effort verses results. Your comments accused the Dbacks of lack of effort because they lost games. Wrong. That’s a confusion of effort verses results. That is my point.
Marte is a terrible team leader. He’s batting leadoff because of his speed, but he doesn’t run out any ground balls so he isn’t going to reach on a close play anyway. He even was jogging to first base against the Phillies last week with a playoff spot on the line.
He’s actually batting leadoff because he is their best hitter and the Dbacks believe in getting their best hitter the most ABs. He’s actually 29th percentile in sprint speed. Worry about the Phillies.
He’s 29th percentile because he doesn’t play hard, you’re proving my point. He could be much better if he gave anything close to a full effort, you can’t tell me his true talent is 29th percentile speed if he was going all out.
It’s not just me criticizing him, his teammates also were upset this year about the number of games he missed for questionable reasons.
They never specifically named who those teammates were anyway, again, worry about the Phillies.
Geraldo Perdomo is the real leader of the team.
Yeah, knocking Marte is pretty harsh. He’s just a super player and if they can get the staff healthy(big if) and maybe sign another bat, they are a 90 win team.
Marte is extremely talented and extremely soft.
As a dbacks fan, this team has proven to me that the ‘23 run was as much of a fluke as everyone thought. Credit to the owner for spending while in their “competitive window”, but now the farm is essentially decimated. It’s time to let go of the Alek Thomas/Jake McCarthy (which have zero value but they treated them like they were stars for so long). Let Pavin play. Let Blaze have a full season as UTIL. Move Marte to first, see if Lawlar can hit the ball at 2nd. The offense can be exciting, but the pitching is without a doubt far from playoff-level.
The team played hard for him. That says a lot. Despite being 10 games out and selling at the deadline, the team played well and was in contention until the end.
Blaze Alexander has really taken a step forward this season and looks to be primed for a solid 2026. Perdomo has gotten better every season thus far. Imagine what that looks like for next season.
The bullpen was a revolving door of AAA pitchers. In many cases Torey was damned whichever guy was up next.
Losing Gurriel down the stretch was the final blow, but they were still playing for the postseason until the end.
I think 2026 is make or break for Hazen and Lovullo.
The team played hard for 60 games. The first 100 they often times looked comatose.
I am a zealous Dback fan and I firmly believe that any fan who doesn’t love Hazen and Torey is shortsighted, emotional, and begging for the franchise to go through a long uncompetitive rebuild. They have a young, winning core that loves Torey.
Talking about being on the “Hot Seat” as a manager, owner Kendrick has put Luvello there. This team as only two positions right now as a 100% with Perdomo, and Carroll. With Marte I see him at 80% chance he will be a D”Back at the start of the 2026 season, Thomas and McCarthy at about 15% being on the roster, Catching is about 80 to 85% that solid right now. Pitching is a whole story with in itself, right now bullpen is just a hot mess, with the starters not much better. So to say this off season is going to be a little interesting is a understatement.